This week’s episode of True Blood was quite good. There was a lot of heartfelt truths, tales of woe, and honest revelations that didn’t come across as cheesy or obnoxious. Just honest moments. Plus a healthy smattering of blood and tits, and the sense that this season has an end-game.

Sookie’s plan is to make herself vampire bait. Once the H-vamps abduct her, Bill will sense her and free Sookie and all the other captives. She needs to drink more of his blood though, because last season’s blood transfusion drained him of any “Bill blood” that may still be in Sookie’s system. Sookie is fine with this, but mid-slurp, reminds him that she has a boyfriend. The two of them go out to a field to sit. And wait. And wait.

Sam and his vampire are heading home after Sam has a heart-to-heart with the reverend. The road is blocked by the angry mob, led by Vince and Maxine. Sam seems surprised that Vince told his secret – I don’t really know why that should surprise him. Anyway, the mob kills Sam’s “fag vampire” and would kill him too, but he turns into an owl and flies away. Luckily no one in this mob seems to be a good shot. They retreat into the brush to wait for the next supernatural to cross their path. (Efficiency seems to evade them.)

Andy and Jessica free Adilyn and Wade from jail, then go to Jason’s house. They fill him and Violet in on what is going on with the angry mob, who wants to kill anyone who isn’t “like them.” The four adults head out to find – and presumably save – Sookie. On the way, they see Sam’s abandoned truck in the middle of the road and stop to investigate. The mob reveals itself and the two clans face off. Maxine shoots first and strikes Jessica in the shoulder, so Violet rips her heart out. This scares the rest of the anti-supe mob back into the woods, but at Andy’s request, Violet captures Rocky for his own safety.

The H-vamps are low on blood – Jerome estimates they have two days left, max. So a-huntin’ they shall go, with Holly in tow in case they need a snack along the way.

And all these groups converge. On Sookie. Lured into a false sense of security, Sookie rushes to a woozy Holly and is captured by the H-vamps. Alcide-as-wolf, and Sam-as-dog jump into the fray. Bill has his hands full with some other H-vamps, but Andy’s crew shows up and they blast the H-vamps into puddles. Sookie is safe, but drenched in infected blood. Violet helps her wash up in the nearby lake, which means that they are out of the way when the anti-supes shoot from the brush. Andy returns fire and kills Leo, the one who was firing (I guess the rest of the mob got separated after Maxine’s murder). But Leo isn’t the only casualty. Alcide has been shot dead. Sookie declines offers to turn him.

I was a little surprised at Alcide’s death. Not that he died; I expect a lot more deaths to come this season. But it was just so unceremonious, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment that could have happened to anyone. Hell, I’m still reeling from Terry’s death last season – that was the death to beat. Maybe it is simply because I have never been a fan of Alcide’s character (then again, I have found the werewolf storylines peppered throughout the series to be obnoxious at best) but I just didn’t feel anything when he died.

There are a few more storylines we need to discuss; namely, Pam and Eric. She is begging him not to give in to the disease, promising that they are working on a cure and with treatment, vampires are living “longer and longer with the disease.” (Yes, the AIDS parallel is is about as subtle as “unobtanium” was in Avatar, but subtlety has never been True Blood’s strong suit.) We get a lengthy flashback to 1986, when they were living in France. Nan interrupts Eric while he is fucking a vintner’s daughter in the vineyards. She takes Eric and Pam inside and chastises them for not registering with the local authorities. “If you want to live under the radar, don’t fuck and suck out in the open,” she warns. She then tells them about the business deal between the Authority and the makers of Tru Blood, and swears mainstreaming is around the corner. Pam is actually apologetic and receptive to Nan’s bossiness; Eric just wants to go back to having sex with Sylvie. And sure enough, he does. But they are interrupted again, this time by Pam. But she has a good reason: she is a captive of the Yakimono Corp. They take Sylvie and tell Eric that he must choose which one will die. He tries to pull the old “Take me” gambit, but it doesn’t work. So, with very little thought, he chooses to save Pam. Sylvie is killed with a swift sword right through the belly. From that point on, Eric falls in line with the Authority.

In the present, Pam is about to give up on Eric, like he has given up on himself, but she remembers something: Sarah Newlin is still alive. No one has seen her, but Jason let her go. The fight returns to Eric’s eyes, and he is ready to go find her.

Sarah is now living under the name Noomi in Los Angeles, where she is shacked up with a swarthy yogi. After some intense tantric sex, the yogi sends her to pick out some wine while he draws a bath. The same Yakimono samurai – older, but no less deadly – capture the yogi at sword point and demand he direct them to her. He admits he recognizes Sarah, but refuses to tell them where she is. So the yogi loses his head. Sarah hears all this and remains hidden.

Also: The reverend can’t have Willa stay at the house anymore – having her there is like having a full bottle of rum in the pantry. He is apologetic, and Willa understands. And Lafayette and James get stoned together in a series of scenes that are pointless except to hint that he and Jessica are drifting apart and he is flirting with Lafayette – but won’t cheat on Jess.